In the aftermath of the fire, Hannah takes the envelope Absalom left for her to her bedroom and reads his confession letter. Absalom frames his death by fire as atonement for his sins. He confesses to sexually abusing Meg, Hannah’s sister, and says only their mother’s intervention in sending her away to be married stopped him from destroying her completely. After Meg left, he confesses, he sexually abused Rachel, Hannah’s daughter. He confesses that Jasper was his son, and Jasper discovered the truth before his death. Absalom confesses that Gabriel is also his son and asks for divine mercy.

Reading the letter, Hannah trembles with anger, grief, and confusion. She thinks of the Amish tradition of immediate forgiveness, recalling how the community forgave the perpetrator’s family after the West Nickel Mines school shooting. Hannah wishes such forgiveness would flow into her heart, but she cannot find it.

Driving home after taking Hannah to Chicago to see Gabriel wrestle, Thomas reflects on his deepening feelings for her while acknowledging that loving a married Amish woman is futile. The next morning, a police officer wakes him to confirm his alibi and informs him that Hannah’s father died in a house fire; it is believed to be an accident.

Thomas emails Gabriel, who has just won the world championship belt in Chicago and is flying to Philadelphia for another match. Thomas tells him about Absalom’s death. Gabriel asks if he should come home, but Thomas advises there is nothing he can do. Gabriel also reveals that he is experiencing tunnel vision and headaches. Thomas urges him to see a doctor, but Gabriel is reluctant because his career is flourishing.

At Absalom’s funeral in Josiah and Hannah’s barn, Thomas sits near the back and observes Hannah, seated with Josiah and her sister Meg. As bearers load the casket onto a carriage, Hannah and Thomas lock eyes for nearly a minute before she turns away.

Following her father’s death, Hannah is haunted by nightmares about Rachel and Gabriel being consumed by water and fire. She keeps the contents of Absalom’s letter secret, even from Josiah, but resolves to discuss it with Meg.

On the morning of Meg’s departure, Hannah takes her for a walk and gives her the confession letter. Meg reads it and breaks down, confirming the abuse. She reveals that she had suspected Absalom fathered Jasper and told her husband Samuel, who dismissed the idea but may have mentioned it to Josiah. When Hannah presses about whether Josiah knew, Meg refuses to discuss it further and leaves for Pennsylvania.

Hannah spirals into despair, feeling her entire life rests on deception. One night, she asks Josiah directly if he knew about her father’s abuse. Josiah remains completely silent. Enraged by what she interprets as cowardice or complicity, Hannah calls Thomas the next morning and asks him to take her to his home. She accuses Josiah of dishonesty through omission and packs her mother’s trunk. Thomas arrives and drives her away. In the truck, Hannah’s kapp blows off. She unpins her hair and lets it fall freely, taking Thomas’s hand.

At Thomas’s house, Hannah sleeps for many hours over the first two nights. Josiah visits to ask if she will attend Sunday meeting, but she refuses. Thomas takes her to a thrift store, where she selects English clothing and leaves wearing jeans and a blouse. They walk to an ice-cream shop, where Hannah enjoys being in public without being scrutinized.

Back at Thomas’s house, she tells him everything about her father’s abuse and her inability to forgive. Hannah appreciates English conveniences and begins reading from Thomas’s mother’s book collection. Josiah continues visiting weekly, but their conversations remain strained, and Hannah feels suspended between two worlds.

Billy reflects on how small events lead to larger changes. A couple of months earlier, he stopped to help Estelle Smithson change a flat tire, and she invited him to dinner as thanks. They began seeing each other regularly, and their relationship became romantic.

Billy’s friend Charlie tells him that Thomas has been seen in town with Hannah Fisher, wearing English clothes with her hair down. Later, Josiah Fisher comes into Billy’s tavern alone on a Friday night, looking defeated. He offers only minimal responses to Billy, barely touches his food, and leaves. Billy and Charlie speculate that Josiah’s solitary visit confirms trouble in the Fisher marriage.

Through the winter months, Hannah remains withdrawn. At her request, Thomas replaces electric lights with lamps and candles. Gradually, she emerges from her melancholy and begins reading his mother’s book collection. While reading Anaïs Nin’s diary, Hannah expresses concern about the author’s lifestyle and worries that Gabriel might encounter such influences. She also muses that Gabriel is both her grandson and her half-brother, a fact she has not shared with Gabriel.

During a February thaw, Thomas and Hannah take long walks together. Hannah tells him that she has not been excommunicated; Josiah calls her time away her senior Rumspringa. She says she misses Amish certainties and may eventually try to return, though she doubts she can go back to being who she was.

In late March, while examining a newborn foal at a friend’s ranch, Thomas receives a call from Gabriel. Gabriel informs Thomas that he woke up in a hotel in Spain, completely blind. Doctors in London discovered a large, inoperable brain tumor that has metastasized throughout his body. He asks if he can fly to Chicago the next day and stay with Thomas. Overcome with grief, Thomas immediately agrees.